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Patented Nov. 13, 1888.

W. O. MOBLEY.

AETESIAN WELL EEILLING DEVICE.

(No Model.)

llnrrnn drains WATSON O. MOBLEY, OF ALLEGHENY,

ritten?.

PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-= HALF TO J. C. KAY, OF SAME PLAGE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 392,627, dated November 13, 1888.

Application filed October 3, 18H7. Serial No.251,311i. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that l, WATSON C. MoBLnY,of Allegheny, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Artesiaii-Vell Drilling Devices; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full7 clear, and exact dcscription thereof.

My invention relates to the drilling of Artcsian wells. llhese wells are drilled by means of bits or tools, which it has been customary heretofore to support in the well by a hemp or Manila' rope, the rope passing from the drum at the base of the derrick up over the crown-pulley at the top thereof, and thence. down into the well during the drilling operation,a temper-screw having a clamp supported on a swivel at the base thereof being employed to connect the rope to the walking-beam, so that the rope is lifted by the stroke of the walking beam. The rope is turned so as to turn the bit or drilling-tool at the bottom of the well by means of a handle on the clamp, the rope hanging from the crown -pulley at the top of the derrick, and it being the custom to permit the rope to rest on the derrick-iioor and coil around the rope entering the well. It is found in drilling in this manner that ou account of the sand and grit formed in the drilling of the wellthe well-dner, even though kept as clean as possible,has a certain amount of sand on its surface, which will enter the bers and coils of the rope as it rests on the tloor and act to rapidly out out the rope and render it useless, so that the heavy Manila rope employed for the purpose cannot be used for more than two or three wells at the furthest. As the hemp or Manila rope Wears outso rapidly,it is very desirable to employ a wire rope for this drilling operation, as the wire rope would last much longer, and would have the further advantage that it is not so liable to stretch, and, consequently, the driller could locate the exact position of the tools within the well and have a better control thereof than heretofore. fire rope has not, however,been used for this purpose,because it was not iiexible enough to wind around the derrick-floor in the same manner as the ordinary Manila 5o ropes, and it could not be properly regulated v with the temper-screw and clamp heretofore employed.

The object of my invention is to provide a temper-screw and clamp which is suitable for the employment of wire rope for drilling these deep wells, and with which the difiiculty of ceiling of the ordinary Manila rope around the rope entering the wells is overcome.

To these ends my invention consists in the apparatus hereinafter particularly described 6o and claimed.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will describe the construction and operation of the same, referring to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a view of the base of the temperscrew and the apparatus for connecting the wire rope to the clamp and operating the same. Fig. 2 is a section on the linex :v,Fig.

l. Fig. 3 is a side view of the apparatus, 7o partly in section. Fig. 4L is an enlarged section on the line y y, Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is an enlarged section on the line .e z, Fig. l.. Figs. 6 and 7 are perspective views of the two parts composing the ropeclamp, and Fig. 8 is a 75 view of another form of collar for swiveling the rope-clamp.

Like letters of reference indicate like parts in each. Y

At the top of the derrick is the erown-pulley, So (not shown,) which, when employed for Wire rope, as preferred by me, is generally made of greater diameter than the ordinary crownpulley now employed with Manila. rope, so that the rope will pass over it freely, from which pulley the rope passes to the base of the derrick, and is then wound on a. suitable drum. The walking-beam is operated by any suitable engine, and hanging from the walkingbeam over the hole or port of the well is the 9o temperscrew O, this temper screw being formed of the frame b, carrying at the base thereof the divided nut b', closed by the clamp b2, so as to engage with the screw-shaft b3. The screw-shaft b has at the base thereof the swivel 9 5 o, which supports, by means of links c', a sleeve, d, within which the rope-clamping apparatus is supported. The links c engage with the sleeve or collar d by means of hooks tl', formed thereon, and the interior of this roo sleeve is turned so as to form a second swivel in connection with a clamp, as hereinafter described. The sleeve d is an open sleeve-that is, .there is an opening, d, formed thereon to permit the entrance ofthe rope and the parts forming the clamp E, the opening d2 corre sponding in width to the drill-rope, or being formed a little larger than said rope, to permit the entrance both of the rope and the clamp into the sleeve. Fitting within this sleeve d are the two parts ef, forming the clamp E, for engaging with the rope, each clamp-piece being formed of a half-piece fitting within the sleeve, and the two clamppieccs when fitting together Within the sleeve forming a clamp swiveled within the sleeve or collar, so that the rope engaged by the clamp can be turned without its being wrapped around the tools or portion of the rope entering the well, the action of turning the rope in drilling simply acting to twist and untwist the strands of the rope. The

' outer faces of the clamp-pieces are cylindrical at their upper ends and are turned to true cylindrical form, so as to move freely within the sleeve. At the upper end of the clamp is the annular shoulder g, resting upon the top face of the sleeve, which shoulder supports the clamp within the sleeve, and formed in the clamp-pieces e f are the semi-cylindrical recesses h, within which the rope fits, the recesses at the upper ends of the clamp-pieces being of such diameter as to permit the free passage of the rope, but the lower end of said recesses or grooves being of smaller diameter, so that when they are drawn together, as hereinafter described, they will bind firmly upon the rope, so securing it to the sleeve, and suspend it from the temper-screw. In Order to permit the free bending or swinging movement of the rope when secured within the clamp, the upper end of the clamp-pieces efare formed iliaring or bell-mouthed, as at h', these bellmouth upper ends preventing the scoring or wearing of the rope. At the lower end ofthe clamping-piece e is formed the clampingarm i, which is rigidly secured to the clamp-piece c and extends around same, the free arm z" having a threaded hole formed, through which the clampingscrew i2 passes, this screw being operated by a handle, i, so as to force the clamping-piece f, which lits between the free ends t" of the arm fr' and the clamping-piece e, against the rope when confined within the grooves or recesses h of the clamping-pieces. In order to secure the clamping-pieces within the sleeve h, they must pass through the opening d2 of the sleeve d. The clampingpiece e is of such size that it can easily pass laterally through this opening and enter the sleeve; but in order that the clamping-piece j' may enter the sleeve when the rope has been placed therein it is necessary that a part of the clamping-piece be cut away, so that it may pass into the sleeve in the same position which it has to occupy therein, and for this purpose the clamping -piece f is cut away or recessed on each side, as at 7s,

`between said recesses being less than the width of the opening d2 in the sleeve. In order, however, that this clamping-piece f may have a `full bearing within the sleeve when it is supporting the rope therein, the upper part of the clamping-piece f, as at l, is formed of the same diameter and shape as the body of the clamping-piece c, and so forms the surface on which the clamping-piece f swivels or turns within the sleeve; and in order to secure the clamping-piece Afwithin the sleeve after the rope is placed therein the clan'iping-piece is raised until its recesses lc correspond to the walls of the sleeve at the slot or opening d3, when it is passed laterally therein against the rope, and it is then dropped down into the sleeve, so that the outer face of the seu1icy lindrical body Z engages with the inner walls of thc sleeve. rllhe outer faces of the clamping-pieces bear against the inner faces of the sleeve in such manner as to move freely therein, the clamping-pieces being supported by the shoulders lr/,and the faces of the two clamping-pieces meet at the upper ends thereof, so that there is no opening which might cut or Wear the rope at this point. As soon as the clamping-piece j" is secured in place, the two clamping-pieces may each be forced against each other by the clampingscrews before described. As it is desired to firmly bind the upper ends of the clamping-pieces against each other, the clamp i is so constructed that when it binds upon the rope at the base of the clamping-pieces it at the same time forces together the upper ends of the clamping-pieces, and in case the single clampingscrew is not sufiicient to insure the proper meeting of the upper clamping-pieces two clamping-pieces may be employed, which will insure this result. The open sleeve or collar d, for supporting and svviveling 'the clamp E, is considered the preferable form; but it is evident that any suitable form of supportingcollar within which the clamp is swiveled can be employedsuch, for example, as the hinged collar shown in Fig. S, which is formed of two semi-cylindrical pieces, p p, hinged together, as at p', and having suitable connecting devices at the opposite ends-such as the engaging-lugs rwhich are united by a coupling-pin passing through them, this collar being opened and closed around the clamp E, which is thus swiveled therein, the annular shoulder g of the clamp resting on the top of the divided collar.

As it is especially desirable that the wire rope shall not be caused to bend more than necessary in the operation of the apparatus, the swivel c is formed, as shown in Figs. l and 2, in such manner that the sleeve d and the clamps thereof shall not be suspended directly under the swivel, but slightly to one side thereof. This is accomplished by bending the arms cIl of the swivel forward in such position that the sleeve will hang slightly to one side of the swivel c, the links c passing through Ithese IOO IIO

IIS

handles, extending out on each side, not being in the road of the rope7 as it was sufficiently slack to permit the handles to pass it without linterfering therewith. As, however, it is desirable to maintain the wire rope in as nearly a vertical position as possible, it is evident that these handles will come in. contact with the wire rope, and that the rope would necessarily be bent more than desirable to permit the turning of the temper-screw. To overcome this difficulty, l employ, instead of the ordinary handle rigidly attached to the temper'screw by a set-screw, as above referred to, a double-acting ratchet-wrench, n, the handle of which extends out on the other side of the swivel c from that on which the rope passes, and this ratchetwrench thus permits the operator to turn the temper-screw without interfering with the position of the wire rope.

hen it is desired to employ my improved drilling apparatus with a wire rope, the rope is passed from the drinn over the crown-pulley, and thence down into the well, suspending the tools therein, and when the tools are adjusted to the proper depth within the well and it is desired to impart the drilling motion to the rope and bit and jar or other drillingtools suspended within the well the rope is passed into the sleeve d, fitting into the cylindrical groove or recesses 7L of the clampingpiece e, which has been previously placed within the sleeve. The clamping-piece f is then raised, so that the recesses lc thereof are opposite the walls of the sleeve d, when the clamping-piece can be passed through the longitudinal opening d of the sleeve against the rope therein, one-half of the rope fitting into the cylindrical groove h of the clamping-piece j'. The clampingpiece j' is then dropped,

so that its cylindrical face Z passes within the cylindrical portion of the sleeve d, its shoulder g resting on the top of the sleeve and the lower end of the clamping-piece resting within the clamping-arm t'. By means of the screw @"2 the clampingpiecef is pressed against the clamping-piece e, so grasping the rope, and at the same time pressing the up per faces of the parts c and f firmly against each other, and preventing the clamp from opening when the apparatus is in operation. During the drilling operation the rope is drawn down slightly from the crown-pulley, so as to render it sufciently slack for the purpose, and the operator, by means of the handle i3 of the clamping-screw,turns the clamping-pieces cf within the sleeve d, so turning the rope and the tools suspended therefrom, and enabling the drilling-bit to strike against different faces of the rock upon which it is operating. As the rope is thus turned, it of course twists the rope between the sleeved and the crown -pulley at the top of the derrick; but the rope will not be injured by the twisting or untwisting thereof, the twisting of the rope being taken up by the several strands composing it, so that the rope can be turned half a dozen or more times in the one direction without untwisting the rope to any great extent, and the operation can then be reversed, the rope being twisted back ward until it is brought to its original condition or twist. Euring this operation the rope is of course held entirely above the derrick-floor, so that there is no opportunity of sand or grit which may rest on the iioor entering within the strands of the rope, and injury to the rope from this cause is therefore precluded, and there is no necessity of the rope twisting around the part of the rope entering the well or around the drilling apparatus. The bell1n0uth upper end of the clampingpieces cf prevents the wearing on the face of the rope and permits it to bend from one side to another as the crank is turned. Vhen it is desired to lower or raise the rope by means ofthe te1nper-screw,upon loosening the clamp b, the temper-screw can be turned by means of the double ratchetwrench n in either direction, and the vertical position of the rope and tools within the well can thus be regulated, the ratchet-wrench operating the temper-screw without the necessityy of bending the wire rope to one side, as might be the case were the double handle-bar, such as now employed,'used to turn the temper-screw. As the screw is turned by means of the ratchet-wrench, the screw turns within the swivel c without affecting the position of the rope, and this enables me to operate the temperscrew without in any way aifecting the swiveling apparatus connected to the rope.

1t is evident that to operate the apparatus in drilling without causing the slack rope to be twisted around the rope entering the well it is necessary to employ these two swivels namely, the rope-clamp swiveled within the sleeve d, and the swivel c, the swivel within the sleeve permitting the twisting of the rope without winding it around the apparatus, while the swivel c permits the operation of the temper-screw.

When it is desired to draw the tools out of the well, as is of course necessary, the rope can be 'freed from the clamp in the following manner: By turning the clampscrew t2 backward the rope is released from the pressure of the clamping-pieces cf. The clampingpieces are then turned to the position indicated in Fig. 5, and the clamping-piecef is raised until the recesses lt thereof coincide with the opening di of the sleeve, when the clamping piece can be drawn out of the sleeve, leaving the rope free to be drawn out through said opening d2, the rope heilig then freed fromthe clamp and temperscrew,so that it can be raised and lowered over the crown-pulley, as usual IOS in the drilling operation. I am thus enabled to employ this wire rope in drilling these deep wells, which has never heretofore been found practicable, and I thus obtain the advantage of the wire rope in strength and durability, and provide a rope whiehisbetter adapted for the purpose, in that it is not liable to stretch and the exact location of the tools within the Well can be determined.

I have described my apparatus as specially applicable to use with wire rope, and as seen from the above statements it overcomes the essential difficulties found with the apparatus heretofore in use if employed for that purpose. As,however, with the ordinary Manila rope the strands can be twisted and untwisted even more easily than with wire rope, and the Manila rope is cut out even more quickly than the wire rope would be by the entrance of Sand between the strands or fibers, it is evident that my improved apparatus has manyA advantages for use with the Manila rope now employed for drilling these wells.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In apparatus for drilling Artesian wells, the combination of a temperscrew provided with a swivel to permit the longitudinal adjustment thereof, and another swivel hung therefrom and engaging with the rope, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. In apparatus for drilling Artesian wells, the combination of a sleeve having an opening therein and a clamp formed of clamping` pieces entering the sleeve through said opening and binding upon the rope, said clamp being swiveled within the sleeve, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

3. In apparatus for drilling Artesian wells, the combination of the suspended sleeve, having an opening formed therein, and a clamp formed of clampingpieees tting within said sleeve and swiveling therein, one clampingpieee having the walls cut away, to enable it to pass through the opening of the sleeve and bind upon the rope, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

4t. In apparatus for drilling Artesian Wells, the combination of the sleeve d and the clamp formed of clamping-pieces e j", entering the sleeve through said opening and having the shoulders g, said clamping-pieces fitting Within the sleeve and swiveling therein, substantially as `and for the purposes set forth.

5. In apparatus for drilling Artesian wells, the combination of the sleeve dvand the clamp fitting within and swiveling within said sleeve, said clamp having the shoulder g, and the eylindrieal grooves h, formed Haring or bellmouthed at the upper ends, as at h', substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

G. In apparatus for drilling Artesian wells, the combination of a temper-screw having a swivel at the base thereof, and a swivel hung Y WATSON C. MOBLEY.

liitncsses:

JAMES I. KAY, J. N. COOKE. 

